+1 for what Wobblegong said.
Further, I never wore gloves for home mechanical work until my daughter was born. Now, I prefer taking every precaution to keep her from getting needlessly exposed to nasties.
Short Answer: Nitrile
Long Answer follows:
I make drugs for fun & profit (I'm a process engineer in a pharma co), so wearing gloves (and a hazmat suit in many cases) is part of my daily job.
That said:
(1) I find latex more comfortable and more compliant - better for precision work (it stretches more, so you can get gloves to really form fit to your hands).
However:
- latex allergies are real and can be a bitch
- as others mentioned, if you don't get a decent thickness latex, they tear easily
- NO GOOD for many organic solvents (any petroleum base, benzene, carbon tetrachloride, whatever else you maniacs have in your garages). These will turn latex into snot.
(2) Nitrile are good and relatively comfy but less compliant, so its hard to get as good a fit as with latex. However, decent quality nitrile gloves are resistant to most shop chemicals, and are quite durable. Also, allergic reactions to nitrile are pretty uncommon.
(3) Vinyl gloves suck to work with. I use them only when necessary based on chemical compatability.